Azernews.Az

Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian has said that reports regarding Turkey`s involvement in brokering talks on the Armenia-Azerbaijan Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh conflict have no merit. The statement came in his address at France`s International Diplomatic Academy.
Turkish media have circulated reports saying Turkey has undertaken a mediating mission in Baku-Yerevan negotiations on resolving the long-standing dispute. Ankara has reportedly offered a plan on solving the problem to the conflicting sides, but the reports have yet to been confirmed by officials.
Nalbandian emphasized that repeated statements have been made in both Turkey and Azerbaijan that both countries are two parts of the same nation, alleging that this precludes Ankara`s role as a mediator that can meet the interests of both parties to the conflict. "How can one part of a nation broker talks between the other part and another state?" he asked.
Further, Nalbandian noted that Armenia, which chairs the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization, has invited Turkish and Azerbaijani foreign ministers to a BSEC ministerial scheduled for this spring. "Undoubtedly, I will be very satisfied with the Turkish foreign minister`s visit to Armenia."
The conflict between the two South Caucasus republics reared up in the late 1980s due to Armenia`s territorial claims. Armenia has been occupying over 20% of Azerbaijan`s internationally-recognized territory since the early 1990s in defiance of international law. The ceasefire accord was signed in May 1994, but over a decade of efforts by US, Russian and French mediators have seen no results.
Touching on Turkey-Armenia relations, which have been historically strained, Nalbandian expressed his hope that relations would normalize and the border between the two countries, which is currently closed, would open without any pre-conditions.
He maintained, however, that possible recognition of the alleged World War I-era genocide of Armenians by the United States could not adversely affect normalization of Yerevan-Ankara ties, as "the political will of both sides is there."
Armenia and Turkey have been at odds and the border between the two countries has been closed since 1993 on Ankara`s insistence due to Armenia`s policy of occupying Azerbaijani territory and Armenian claims about the alleged World War I-era genocide. Yerevan is failing both to end the occupation and to relinquish its territorial claims against Azerbaijan, as well as continues its propaganda regarding the alleged genocide throughout the world. It has also refused to embrace Ankara`s repeated proposals to establish a joint commission of historians to study the 1915 developments in the Ottoman Empire.

Fresh war
In his statement, Nalbandian also expressed concern over a possible resumption of hostilities, saying Azerbaijan was still preparing to launch a war.
"The wounds remaining from the past war with Azerbaijan have not healed yet. However, Baku is pursuing a policy seeking to ignite a fresh war," he claimed.
Azerbaijani officials have repeatedly warned against Yerevan`s policy of aggression, saying the country`s land will be freed at any cost.
Nalbandian further emphasized that Azerbaijan has circulated documents on the Garabagh conflict at the United Nations.
"These papers are not only negatively affecting peace talks, but also represent an attempt to justify a possible use of force," he alleged.
Azerbaijan`s representatives at the UN have recently submitted two documents to the Security Council and General Assembly covering the international groups` support for the country`s territorial integrity and diplomacy seeking to condemn Armenia, which has carried out military aggression in Upper Garabagh and adjacent regions.